Feed mechanism



June 3, 1941. A; T. CASSIERE.

FEED MECHANISM Filed Jan. 23, 1939 FIG. 2

Inveni'orzAlphonse T. Cassiere Patented June 3, 1941 T FFIQE FEED MECHANISM Alphonse T. Cassiere, Long Beach, Calif., assignor to Frank L. Rogers, Long Beach, Calif.

Application January 23, 1939, Serial No. 252,307

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a feed mechanism whereby materials are continuously fed under pressure to a point of delivery. This applica tion is a continuation-in-part of U. S. Patent 2,152,632, issued April 4, 1939;

My feed mechanism is particularly applicable to feeding or mixing cementitious material, although other materials may be fed and these materials may be dry, moist or wet.

An object of my invention is to provide a feed wheel shaped as a figure of revolution and having conical end bearing surfaces, this feed wheel acting as a valve to prevent the escape of air from the air conduit.

Another object is to provide a feed mechanism of the character stated, in which the feed wheel is seated against the intake opening or against the discharge opening, thereby maintaining pressure in the air conduit.

A further object of my invention is to provide a feed mechanism including a feed wheel shaped as a figure of revolution, the periphery of the feed wheel being provided with a plurality of recesses or pockets which are adapted to receive material to be fed from the. intake to an air conduit by rotation of the feed wheel.

A feature of my invention is to provide afeed wheel which acts to convey material to the air conduit and also as a valve to prevent the escape of air from the air conduit. The feed wheel may be in the shape of any figure of revolution having non-parallel sides towards its ends. The feed wheel is preferably made of yieldable material such as rubber. The housing of the feed wheel may likewise be lined with rubber or other yieldable material. The ends of the feed wheel, how'- ever, must provide a satisfactory annular sealing area to attain the desired valve-like action. To accomplish this, the ends of the feed wheel should be formed as any symmetrical figure of revolution except one in which the sides are parallel, as for example a cylinder. Spherical figures may also be used, as claimed in my pending application, Serial No. 723,351, now Patent 2,152,632. To those skilled in the art, many possible useful combinations and variations will become apparent. For example, I may use a wheel shaped as two cones with a common base, a wheel of cylindrical shape with either conical or spherical ends. The feed wheel body, as pre viously stated. may be formed as any figure of revolution, but the ends of the wheel contacting the housing must be formed as a figure of revolution with non-parallel sides. 7

Other objects, advantages and features of my invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the accompanying drawing. In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of my feed mechanism showing a cylindrical feed wheel with spheroidal ends.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional View of a modified form of feed mechanism in which the feed wheel is shaped as a cylinder with conical ends.

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view of a modified form of feed mechanism in which the feed wheel is shaped as two cones with a common base.

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional View of the feed mechanism shown in Figure 1 and including a preferred arrangement of air supply, driving means, auxiliary feed means and means for exciting a downward pressure on the feed wheel.

Like reference characters denote like parts in the several figures of the drawing. The various figures show practical commercial embodiments of the invention, but as such illustrations are primarily for purposes of disclosure it will be understood that the structure may be modified in various respects without departure from the broad spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter defined and claimed.

In Figure 1 the mechanism comprises a feed wheel housing I, a hopper 2 rising therefrom having a suitable capacity for the purpose intended, an intake opening 3 in the top of the housing I through which the material passes, as will be later described.

A feed wheel a is rotatably mounted in the housing I, a shaft 5 is journaled in the housing I and the feed wheel 4 is fixedly attached to this shaft. A plurality of peripheral pockets 6 are formed in the feed wheel i parallel to the shaft 5, and extending into an air conduit 7 provided in the housing 1 An air supply pipe 9 extends into one end of the conduit 1 and an outlet pipe 8 extends from the other end of said conduit to a point of final delivery.

For the purpose of cleaning and draining my feed mechanism, a two-way valve 59 may be provided in pipe 8. A by-pass H extends from the valve l0 through which material is drained or forced from the feed mechanism and the various pipes attached thereto. 7

For use with high pressures, a 'i connection I2 is provided in air pipe 9 and a pipe Hi extends therefrom through a valve M and into hopper 2. A sealing means I5 is provided in the top of the hopper.

In Figure 2 a modified housing id is provided with hopper 2a and has an intake opening 3a.

- The modified feed wheel 4a is rotatably mounted in housing la and fixedly mounted on shaft 5a which is journaled in the housing. Peripheral.

pockets 6a formed in the feed wheel extend into air conduit la, said conduit being provided with an air supply pipe 9a and an outlet pipe 3a.

In Figure 3 another housing modification lb is provided with hopper 2b and has an intake opening 3b. The feed wheel 4b having ends designed to fit the housing lb is rotatably mounted therein and fixedly mounted on shaft 51) which is journaled in said housing. Peripheral pockets lib formed in the feed wheel are parallel to and extend into air conduit lb, said conduit being provided with an air supply pipe 927 and an outlet pipe 8b.

The arrangement shown in Figure 4 is substantially identical with that shown in Figure 1, with the exception that a pressure equalizer and auxiliary feed are disclosed. The feed wheel, 4 is fixedly mounted on shaft 5 which is capable of slight vertical movement in housing I. The housing I is provided with a cylinder IS in the bottom-thereof. A piston I1 is mounted in the cylinder l6 and a pair of arms l8, l9 extend upwardly and are journaled on the shaft 5 on each side of the housing I. A pressure control line 2! extends from air supply pipe 9 to cylinder it through a valve 22. A flexible boot is journaled to the shaft 5 on each side of the housing I to prevent air leakage around the shaft. One end of the boot is journaled on the shaft and the other end is clamped to the housing.

A delivery line 23 extends from outlet pipe 8 through nozzle housing 24 and valve 25 to spray nozzle 26. An auxiliary feed may be provided from pressure tank through secondary supply line 29 and valve 28 into nozzle housing 24 by means of a metal extension tube 27. 7

Driving means for the feed wheel consisting of an electric motor 32 and a belt 3! is provided.

The air supply consists of a compressed air tank 34 supplied with compressed air by compressor 35 driven by electric motor 36. Air line 31 extends from the tank through control valve 33 to air supply pipe 9. a

In operation, referring again to Figure 1, th material to be fed is introduced into the hopper 2, the rotating feed wheel 4 carries small charges of the material into the pockets 6 from the housing intake. 3 down into the air conduit. 1 The compressed air flow through the conduit forces the material from the pockets and on out the pipe 8.

Since the ends of the feed as figures of revolution with non-parallel sides and the housing conforms to their shapes, and since the wheel in itself is made of a yieldable material, the pressure in the conduit normally forces the wheel upwards whereby leakage of air from the conduit to the hopper is prevented by the pressure of the ends of the feed wheel against the housing. It is, to be understood that the modified feed wheels shown in Figures 2 and 3 may be substituted for that shown inFigures l and 4.

It is desirable to vary the air pressure used in the mechanism according to the material being fed. Since some materials may require a very high pressure and this upwards pressure from the conduit against the feed wheel may be sufficient to cause a very noticeable drag on the feed Wheel, it is necessary to provide compensating means. In the present invention in Figure 4,.by adjustment of the valve [4 leading from the air supply line 9 to the hopper 2, a counter-pressure may be applied to the material above the feed wheel 4 and thus prevent binding of the feed wheel against the housing sides due to excessive pressure in the conduit 1. At times, as for exwheels are formed 1 ample when feeding material that has a tendency to pack under pressure, it may be inadvisable to apply pressure inside the hopper. In such case the pressure equalizer shown in Figure 4 may be utilized and valve I4 closed. Air pressure in the cylinder l6 acting upon piston I! will cause a downward pull upon shaft 5 to which the feed wheel 4 is fixedly mounted. In this manner binding of the feed wheel against the housing walls may be prevented while maintaining normal atmospheric pressure in the hopper.

If desired the pressure equalizer may be used to effect a sealing of air pressure by the feed wheel at the junction of the housing I with the air conduit 7. Other means for moving the shaft and feed wheel downward such as adjusting screws on the bearings of shaft 5 will be apparent. 7 I

At times it may be advantageous to feed one material through the feed mechanism and introduce a second at the nozzle. For example mineral aggregate, sand, cement mixed with sand, cork, sawdust, etc., may be fed by the feed mechanism into delivery line 23 to spray nozzle 26 and a bituminous mixture or emulsion supplied from pressure tank 30 through auxiliary delivery'line 29 and introduced into the materials being supplied by the feed mechanism prior to their reaching the spray nozzle 28.

Some of the advantages of my present invention are as follows: The fact that the material fed may be wet, moist, or dry; any desired combination of materials may be utilized; the selfsealing action of the rotor obviates the necessity of the commonly used but unsatisfactory packing glands and such; a great range of working pressures may be utilized by means of the pressure equalizing means; the self-sealing action of the rotor also compensates for wear and thus makes for more economical operation by eliminating frequent rotor renewal and repair operations. Other advantages and features of the present mechanism will be obvious to those skilled in the art. a

I claim as my invention:

1. A feed mechanism comprising a housing, a feed wheel rotatably mounted in said housing, a hopper on the housing whereby material is fed thereto, an air conduit adjacent said feed wheel through which air under pressure is forced, said housing having an opening extending to the air conduit, said feed wheel having elongated peripheral pockets therein whereby material is conducted from the hopper to the air conduit, said feed wheel projecting into the air conduit, said pockets being arranged in the feed wheel parallel to the conduit and said feed wheel being in the shape of two cones with a common base.

2. A feed mechanism comprising a housing, a feed Wheel rotatably mounted in said housing, a hopper on the housing whereby material is fed thereto, an air conduit adjacent said feed wheel through which air under pressure is forced, said housing having a lower opening in register with said air conduit, said feed wheel having elongated peripheral pockets therein whereby material is conducted from said hopper to said air conduit, said peripheral pockets extending into said air conduit, and conical end bearing portions formed as a part of said feed wheel.

ALPHONSE T. CASSIEREJ. 

